This invention relates to a personal jet propelled watercraft and more particularly to an improved drive and seating arrangement for such a watercraft.
Jet propelled watercraft have a number of advantages over more conventional propeller propelled watercraft that make them highly desirable for a wide variety of applications. In addition to being capable of operating in shallower water than a conventional propeller driven watercraft, jet propelled watercraft generally can provide a more pleasing appearance since the entire engine and propulsion unit can be concealed within the hull.
A particularly popular type of jet propelled watercraft is designed to be operated by one or more riders seated in tandem, straddle fashion. With this type of watercraft, however, it has been generally the practice to provide a tunnel beneath the seat in which the powering jet propulsion unit is positioned. The engine is then positioned forwardly of the tunnel at either a mid or bow location and drives the jet propulsion unit through a shaft that extends through a bulkhead separating the tunnel from the forwardly positioned engine compartment. Although this arrangement has a number of advantages, it also presents some disadvantages.
For example, in the type of drive layout previously noted, the vehicle is provided with very little storage capability. As a result of this, the use of the vehicles having this type of drive is relatively limited. For the most part, these type of watercraft are limited to recreational activities and cannot be utilized for utilitarian purposes.
It is, therefore, a principal object to this invention to provide an improved hull, seating and propulsion arrangement for a jet propelled watercraft.
It is a further object to this invention to provide an improved hull, seating and drive arrangement for a small jet propelled watercraft wherein the watercraft can provide a large storage capacity.
It is a further object to this invention to provide an improved hull and drive arrangement for a jet propelled watercraft wherein the engine and drive may be positioned at the rear of the watercraft.
In many instances it is desirable to provide a larger concentration of the weight of the watercraft at the rear of the watercraft. Such rear positioning of the center of gravity improves the ability to make turns in the watercraft. However, for the reasons discussed above, prior watercraft having jet propulsion units have not permitted such a large rearward weight bias.
It is, therefore, a still further object to this invention to provide an improved hull, drive and seating arrangement for a jet propelled watercraft that permits the center of gravity to be positioned more closely adjacent the rear of the watercraft.
Where the engine and drive for the watercraft is positioned at the rear of the watercraft, there arise some problems. That is, if the watercraft has a rearwardly biased center of gravity, then it is also necessary to provide additional floatation at the rear of the watercraft.
It is, therefore, a still further object to this invention to provide an improved hull, engine compartment and seating arrangement for a jet propelled watercraft wherein the hull accommodates a large portion of the center of gravity of the watercraft at its rear portion.
In addition to the floatation situation, when the engine and drive for the watercraft is positioned at the rear of the watercraft, it is important to insure that the engine is well protected from the body of water in which the watercraft is operating and also that the riders of the watercraft are protected from water splashing up at the rear.
It is, therefore, a still further object to this invention to provide an improved hull configuration for a watercraft powered by a jet propulsion unit and engine mounted at the rear of the watercraft.
It is a further object to this invention to provide an improved arrangement for protecting the engine and the occupants from water and also permitting water to drain easily so that it will not accumulate in either the passenger or engine areas.
There have been proposed small jet propelled watercrafts wherein the jet propulsion unit is positioned directly beneath the powering internal combustion engine. This type of drive layout has a number of advantages in offering compactness and maximum space utilization. However, this type of drive arrangement has only been used in the type of small watercraft that is operated by a single rider sitting on top of the area where the engine and power unit are contained.
It is, therefore, a still further object to this invention to provide an improved jet propelled watercraft of the type embodying an engine positioned above the jet propulsion unit which it drives and which accommodates more than a single rider.